Hold Me Closer
by STCabbie
Summary: Only several months after Ben's coronation, he agreed to allow one more VK to transfer to Auradon Prep: Adelaide Tremaine, daughter of Anastasia Tremaine, one of Cinderella's evil stepsisters. Adelaide gets off to a good start, even beginning to explore a possible relationship with Petey Pan, however a vindictive Chad Charming could throw her happily ever after out the window...
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Disney Descendants or any of their characters, however Adelaide Tremaine and Petey Pan are my OCs**

 **A/N: First chapter of what I hope will be one of my most successful stories to date. This fanfic might have a bit of a slow start but if all goes according to plan then it will all be worth it in the end, so please stick around!**

* * *

 **Chapter 1: Prepping for Auradon Prep**

Anastasia Tremaine grumbled to herself as she watched her daughter pack her bags. The teenager grabbed fistfuls of red, black and white clothing, neatly folding them to perfection and arranging them into the large suitcase. Years of acting as the household maid had taught Adelaide Tremaine how to prepare clothes in the tidiest way possible.

'What's the point in going?!' Anastasia snapped. 'What could you possibly do in Auradon that you can't do here?!'

Adelaide tucked a few strands of her blonde hair behind her ear and sighed quietly. 'You don't understand, mother. This is my one chance to make proper friends and… be good!'

The red-haired woman glared at her daughter. 'I don't know where I went wrong with you. You are a _villain_ , and you should act like one. Don't you know what people say about you, Adelaide? They call you weak and sick-minded. Villains are not _good_ , you stupid child. You're weak-willed, just like your father.'

Addie stiffened and paused momentarily. _"Don't listen to her,"_ she thought to herself, _"you aren't weak-willed. You are strong."_

'Father was a decent man, unlike you,' Addie retorted. 'He liked helping people. He liked doing generous deeds. He was everything you weren't.'

Anastasia bristled. 'And he was also an idiotic, simpering fool that met his end due to trying to help people. Helping people brings nothing but pain, child. Surely you remember that? Or do I have to lock you in the cupboard for another two days?'

Addie's heart sped up, thumping erratically in her chest. Her nimble fingers dug through her suitcase and scrabbled around in the bottom, eventually closing around a small, plastic night-light in the shape of a pumpkin. As a small child, only five years old, Addie had encountered a sickly baby sparrow in the garden. The creature had pitifully tweeted to the other birds in the sky whilst unable to move. Feeling a tugging in her heart, Addie scooped the bird up and hid it underneath her bed for several weeks, smuggling in worms and seeds from the garden for it to eat. In time, the bird was ready to fly into the open sky.

Unbeknownst to Addie, her mother caught her setting the bird free and realises what had happened, so she locked the child in a pitch-black broom cupboard for 48 hours. Addie developed an irrational fear of the dark from the incident and from then on had to sleep with a night light, which she would ask Jay to steal for her from various markets.

'I hope you realise that if you go to Auradon and "become good" then you will not be welcome back in this house. Dealing with your father's terrible attitude was painful enough and I will not condone my daughter behaving in the same way.'

Anastasia sighed heavily and left the room. Adelaide placed the last few dresses in her suitcase and zipped it shut. Her handbag lay open on the dresser. The white paint was stained yellow from age and it was flaking away at the edges. Inside the handbag was several books from the sparse bookcase, a hairbrush and what little makeup she owned.

'ADELAIDE!' Anastasia bellowed from downstairs. 'THE CAR IS OUTSIDE!'

With a very deep breath, Addie picked up her bags and took one last look at her shabby room. The floorboards were damp and creaky, her bed little more than an iron frame with several sacks of straw as a mattress and a moth-eaten jumper as a pillow. The bookcase had been assembled in a rush and was nearly collapsing as a result, despite the fact that little to no books had ever lived on it. The stench of damp was prevalent and Addie had made sure to spray herself with her best perfume so she could make a good impression on Auradon.

Standing at the front door of their tumbledown house was a large, beefy, bald man with black sunglasses and a black suit. He silently grasped the large suitcase from Addie's hand and effortlessly slid it into the boot of the waiting limo. He opened the door and gestured for Addie to get in.

'Well,' she said, turning to face Anastasia, 'I guess this is goodbye for now, mother.'

Anastasia said nothing and instead glared coldly at her daughter.

'I'll write to you, but… well, I hope you'll write back.' She offered an awkward smile before climbing into the limo with downcast eyes. The leather seats were plush and comfortable, making Addie's knotted back rejoice. Her blue eyes felt heavy and she struggled to fully look at all of the sweets that rested on the little bar opposite her seat. Unable to resist the comforting warmth of the vehicle, she curled up on the seat and quickly fell asleep.

* * *

Mal woke up that morning to a gentle yet heavy hand tracing patterns up and down her arm. She smiled slightly at the ticklish feeling, knowing instantly who was doing it. Her mind was too fogged with sleep to realise that this meant the person had unlocked her door, snuck in and sat on her bed without waking her up – a very impressive feat.

'Are you awake now?' a light-hearted voice teased. 'I've been doing this for ages.'

Rolling towards her boyfriend, Mal giggled sleepily. 'Well you should've woken me up properly.'

'Well, yeah, but then I couldn't have watched you sleep. And that's too good to miss out on.'

'You dork,' Mal replied, sitting up and yawning. Her hands moved to her hair, smoothing down the purple tangles. Ben reached across and grasped the hairbrush from the nightstand. He pulled Mal onto his lap and started pulling the brush through her dark tresses. Looking across the room revealed that Evie was still fast asleep, her chest rising and falling underneath the pink duvet.

'Her and Doug were out until late last night,' Mal whispered. 'She came in just before curfew and collapsed into bed.'

'What were they doing?'

'Trust me, I don't think we want to know,' Mal chuckled darkly, remembering the giddy smile that was plastered across Evie's face and the way her eyes were clouded over in sheer bliss. 'Let's just say I don't think they spent their entire date "studying".'

Ben caught on, his mouth opening into a shocked circle. His cheeks blazed red and he shook his head furiously to rid the image of one of his close friends getting a little too up-close-and-personal with Evie than is allowed.

'A-Anyway,' he stammered, quietly clearing his throat, 'the plans for today. As long as the driver we sent for your friend has kept to the schedule – which he should have, they're normally pretty good at that – she'll be on her way here now, which leaves us about an hour to get ready.'

'AN HOUR?!' Evie shrieked, bolting upright in her bed. Her blue locks were a total mess, almost as if someone had been raking their hands through them the night before. Mal watched her best friend in stunned silence as Hurricane Evie zoomed towards her wardrobe, frantically throwing t-shirts and jeans over her shoulders as she searched for the perfect outfit.

'Well, thanks for the wakeup call but I think me and Evie can manage ourselves from here,' Mal joked. 'I'll meet you at Carlos and Jay's dorm in 45 minutes.'

Ben laughed as he stood up, stretching his arms out. 'Alright, alright, I get the hint. See you soon, Mal.'

'Bye, Benny Boo!' Mal teased as she shoved him out of the door and slammed it behind him. Turning around, she saw that Evie had already thrown what she deemed to be a suitable outfit on her friend's bed. Not bothering to argue with Hurricane Evie, Mal gathered up the clothes and slinked off to the bathroom to get changed, leaving Evie screaming to herself about whether she should wear a dress or not.

Not long later, Mal emerged from the bathroom to find a significantly calmer Evie gazing lovingly into the wall-length mirror as she brushed her hair.

'Oh, M! I know those clothes would look amazing on you!' the princess chirped. She shifted to the left on her footstool so Mal could see her reflection. Her black leather jacket, the same one she'd worn on her first date with Ben, warmed her bare shoulders. The black tank top, emblazoned with Maleficent's twin dragons logo, was a new addition to her wardrobe (most likely something Evie had stitched a few days ago and never mentioned). The outfit was completed with black, ripped skinny jeans and her faithful combat boots.

'Not enough spikes,' Mal said to herself, digging through her jewellery box. She produced a black velvet bracelet lined with tiny metal spikes. Slipping that onto her left wrist, she also grabbed Ben's signet ring and slid it onto the second finger of her right hand. Her studded purple belt lay across the back of a chair nearby, so she grabbed that and buckled it around her waist.

'Fiercely welcoming,' Evie approved, finishing off her own ensemble with her signature silver tiara. Her ripped fishnet dress was a bold new move, even for a fashionista such as herself. Over the past two days, Evie had taken one of her old, midnight blue dresses and completely covered it in black fishnet tights that she never wore anymore. She still wore her poisoned apple necklace, a piece of jewellery that rarely left her person, and her silver bangles.

'I love the shoes, E,' Mal noted, shooting an admiring glance at the strappy black stilettos.

'Thank you!' Evie preened one last time in the mirror before looking at the clock that hung beside the east-facing window. 'Perfect, it's 9:43 now. By the time we get to the boys' room we'll be fashionably late.'

Mal rolled her green eyes and huffed irritably. 'I promised Ben we'd be there on time.'

'When is _time_?'

'Approximately two minutes from now. Let's _move,_ Evie.'

Grabbing her purse, Evie flounced out of the room, her Poisoned Apple perfume wafting in the air. Mal tried not to gag at the sickly-sweet scent and locked the door to their room before strolling towards the side of the castle with the male dorms.

* * *

'How nice of you to grace us with your presence!' Jay called as Mal and Evie emerged through his door. 'Ben was about to send out a search party for you.'

'I was not!' Ben argued, straightening his immaculate blue suit. 'Do I look okay? I want to give this new student the first impression I didn't quite manage to give you four.' His fingers crept across his left shoulder, brushing away some imaginary dust.

'Your suit is gleaming, for God's sake, stop faffing,' Mal instructed, grasping his hand firmly. 'Can we go now? We'll be late.'

'Of course, mademoiselle,' Ben grinned, tucking Mal's arm through his own and leading her from the messy dorm room. Carlos rolled his eyes, making Jay snort with laughter. Evie tossed her hair over her shoulder and strode after her best friend.

'If you two don't hurry up then there'll be nobody here to welcome the new student, and that's the last thing we need right now,' she snapped, feeling rather stressed out.

The two boys dashed after the others, hastily locking their door. As the group of five travelled to the courtyard of Auradon Prep, they were greeted by various other students. Lonnie crossed their path briefly, stopping only to praise Mal on her "wicked cool" clothes before dashing off again to find Audrey. Jane bumped into them as she left the library, meekly but gratefully accepting Carlos' invitation to join them. Normally Jane would avoid any scenarios that involved being near her mother in case she drew any unnecessary attention, but even this socially awkward teen couldn't deny that meeting a new VK would be very interesting.

The two huge oak doors of Auradon Prep's entryway had been flung open, letting the late spring sunshine flood into the reception hall. Mal could clearly see the school's marching band lined up outside, warming up their instruments. As they walked through the path the band had created in their formation, Evie blushed as she locked eyes with Doug. He wore a dopey little smiley on his face, much like his father always did, as Evie gave him a tiny wink.

Fairy Godmother bustled over, quickly giving Jane a fond peck on the cheek before taking her customary place in front of Ben and Mal. She had to admit, although privately in her own head, that she much preferred the welcoming committee when it included the VKs and not a silly, simpering Audrey who was too busy bragging about Ben's royal standing to bother caring about a new student.

'Alright, everyone, get ready! Here comes the car!' Fairy Godmother declared as a sleek black limousine drove into sight. It looped around the impressive centrepiece fountain before drawing to a stop. The beefy driver quickly exited and held open the door.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own Disney Descendants. Adelaide Tremaine and Petey Pan are my OCs, however.**

 **A/N: Massive thanks to my two friends Gemma and Charlotte for reading my chapters and giving me tips and ideas! This process is going to be so much easier with you two helping me! I hope you all enjoy chapter 2, hopefully chapter 3 will be up in the next few days. I want to churn out as many chapters as possible before I become inevitably bored and lose interest so you'll have plenty to read before that happens.**

* * *

 **Chapter 2: Welcome to Auradon**

Adelaide woke up with a sudden jolt. Her eyes were sticky with sleep and unshed tears which she quickly rubbed away.

' _Crying is weak!'_ Anastasia had always screeched. _'I can't be proud of a weak daughter!'_

Despite her twisted outlook on life and how to raise a child, Adelaide couldn't bring herself to hate her mother. She was fully aware of how emotionally abusive Maleficent, the Evil Queen, Cruella and Jafar were to their kids. If she was being honest, Anastasia's biggest flaw was that her own mother had disregarded her so much as a child, she herself had no clue what true love and happiness felt like. As a teenage girl, not much older than Adelaide was now, Anastasia had been open to finding true love and embracing joy, but then King Adam formed the United States of Auradon and banished all of the villains (including Anastasia) to the Isle of the Lost. Anastasia's mother soon died from pneumonia, resulting in Drizella going off the "deep end" and becoming clinically insane. Left alone to fend for herself, Anastasia sought comfort in the tri-monthly inspections performed by a staff member of the Auradon kingdom. The red-head was immensely attracted to the collected calm of the inspector, and he seemed to develop feelings for the pitiful Anastasia as well. Before she knew it, five years had passed and Anastasia had united with the inspector on more than one occasion. It just so happened that on the last occasion, she ended up pregnant with Adelaide.

Adelaide's father never got to find out about her. Other residents of the Isle of the Lost became suspicious over the increasingly frequent inspections and put two and two together. They killed the inspector in cold blood, revelling in the absolute chilled horror that surely fell upon the kingdom of Auradon. Anastasia, driven insane herself with grief, became convinced that the inspector's love for Anastasia had driven him to his untimely death.

'Love is cruel and wicked,' she decided. 'Love is not a magical force of nature. It is a sham that can't be depended upon.'

Adelaide's first life lesson had been this one, and it had stayed drilled in her brain since she could understand the basics of the English language. Anastasia remained distant from her daughter throughout their lives, refusing to get too attached in fear of love taking away the only other company she had. All those years of no love and no happiness had left Anastasia an empty husk of what she was once, something which Adelaide was reminded of whenever she locked her hopeful blue eyes with her mother's black eyes.

As Adelaide pondered how her mother would be feeling right now, she didn't realise the limo had pulled to a halt. The tinted windows didn't reveal much around her but she could clearly see the outline of many, many people.

 _ **Too many.**_

Before she could prepare herself, the door of the limo swung open, flooding the black interior with blinding sunlight. A huge hand beckoned her out and with no other option, Addie grasped it tightly, fumbling out into the open.

Her eyes first met those of Mal. The familiar piercing green made her feel comfortable and relieved. Evie sported a huge smile on her dainty face. Jay and Carlos smiled gently as well. They'd never been as close to Addie as Evie and Mal were (although "closeness" was never well explored on the Isle of the Lost; Mal and Evie tolerated Addie more than anybody else did). A very tall, well-built boy standing flush against Mal's side captured Adelaide's attention.

'Hi!' the boy beamed. 'I'm Ben! Welcome to Auradon Prep!'

Mal rolled her eyes at his enthusiasm. 'Tone it down, boy. You aren't a poodle greeting it's owner.'

Adelaide blinked at the teasing look Mal sent the handsome boy. Mal had never been pleasant to somebody like that. Never. Although her comment was slightly harsh, it was evident by the tone of her voice that she wasn't being mean and she was in fact being… _nice?_

'Welcome, new student!' a jolly woman dressed entirely in blue shouted. 'It is our _honour_ to embrace you with open arms into our school!'

Mal stifled a laugh.

'Addie, it's been ages,' the young fairy smirked, giving her old friend a fist-bump. 'How's your mother?'

'Still criminally insane,' Addie drawled. 'What about yours? We all heard about how you defeated Maleficent but what happened?'

'Shrank herself into a gecko because she's a colossal cow,' Mal replied with a straight face. 'She's locked up in a magical box. Fairy Godmother,' she gestured to the woman in blue who was still robotically beaming, 'thinks she can "learn to love like I did" but she certainly hasn't grown any bigger.'

There was a short span of silence as a sudden frown appeared on Mal's face before she smoothed it out.

'I see.' Addie smiled at her other friends. 'Hey, guys. Long time no see.'

Evie squealed in excitement. 'I can't believe you're finally here!'

Fairy Godmother gently tapped Evie on the shoulder as she cleared her throat, absorbing all of the attention. 'Now then, Adelaide, your friends will give you a tour of the school and show you to your dorm. I believe you'll be sharing with my daughter, Jane! She'll take good care of you whilst you settle in here. Library hours are 8 'til 11 and, as I told these children when they arrived, I have a small thing about curfews!' She twittered with laughter, an odd gasping, snuffling noise that sounded somewhat like a bird with asthma. 'I'll find you tomorrow to begin your first Remedial Goodness class!'

Fairy Godmother swished away with her spine perfectly straight and shoulders back, looking every part the king that Ben didn't with his bemused grin and relaxed left leg.

'Remedial Goodness?' Addie repeated. 'Was she being serious?'

'Deadly,' Mal replied, wrapping an arm around the blonde's shoulders. 'But don't worry, it's really easy. Just pick the answer that sounds the least fun.' She smiled brightly at her group of friends. 'Shall we?'

Ben held out his hand and entwined his fingers with Mal's, making Addie give Evie a rather startled look. The princess wiggled her eyebrows in response and mouthed 'I'll tell you later.'

Jay bopped Addie on the head, giving her a shit-eating grin from where he towered above her. 'I see you still haven't grown. You're still a botfly, huh?'

'Shove off, Jay, I'm not afraid to hurt you.'

'You'll have to reach me first!' he ruffled her hair and sprinted away through the front door. Addie sucked in her 100th breath of the day and stepped through the door, where she gasped in amazement.

The grand hall was breath-taking, with Italian marble floors and oak-panelled walls. Two sweeping staircases on the left and right sides of the hall led to the first floor of the castle. There were two open doors at the bottom of either staircase.

'The left door goes to the dining room, where we have lunch,' Ben explained. 'The right door leads to the classrooms on this floor. The science labs are all through there; your Remedial Goodness classroom is upstairs by the computer rooms. It's the classroom with no computers and two big windows for a front wall, you can't miss it.' Ben tried to think of anything else helpful to say and failed. 'Actually, let's go upstairs and find the room so you know where it is.'

Addie took a moment to admire the huge portrait of King Adam and Queen Belle. Belle was the epitome of grace, her sunshine-yellow ballgown clashing with the king's blue suit.

' _So that's where the kingdom colours came from,'_ Adelaide thought. She couldn't help but think that despite the perfected smile, Belle's eyes held a hint of irritation and sadness. The king just looked ticked off, although that was nothing new – the rumour on the Isle of the Lost was that the only person Beast had ever smiled for was Belle and Ben. Apparently not even his subjects had been graced with a smile, not once!

'Come on, Addie,' Mal called over her shoulder from the top of the stairs. 'If you don't hurry up I'll have to cast a speed spell on your shoes.'

'You can do that?' Carlos asked in shock and a bit of fear.

'Yep.'

'I-I don't believe you.'

'Here, allow me to demonstrate!' She quickly pulled her spell book out from inside her leather jacket and flipped it open to a certain page. 'Beware for swear, make Carlos speed from here to there.'

'Mal, NO-' but the young boy's feet had taken off without his permission, making him sprint faster than a racehorse. Girly screams exploded from his mouth, shocking other students that pinned themselves to the wall to dodge the spotty torpedo.

Ben gave her a brief disapproving glance. 'You know you aren't meant to do that.'

Mal giggled and winked at him. 'It feels good to be bad.'

'Jesus, get a room,' Addie scoffed. Affection like theirs was extremely rare to see on the island as everybody was, well, evil. Evil people aren't exactly very big on showing love to others.

Evie whispered: 'If you think that's bad you don't want to see Chad and Audrey. They're never off each other. Although I've seen Mal and Ben act in a way that would give them a run for their money…'

'Excuse you!' Mal snapped. 'You're the one that slunk into our room at five to eleven last night with this _look_ that just screamed you and Doug had-'

'That's _enough_!' Ben gasped, clasping a hand over Mal's twisting mouth. 'Can we not talk about that kind of stuff in an educational place, please?!'

Adelaide looked at Evie in alarm, shocked that someone like her would be able to get that close to somebody, especially a boy, in such a short span of time.

'I'm so sorry,' Ben said to Addie. 'They don't normally talk like that. Please, let's continue the tour.'

'Has anyone ever told you that you say "please" a lot?' Addie replied rather bluntly.

Ben flushed red. 'Well, no, but…'

Not giving him another reply, Adelaide turned around and wandered down the hallway, glancing carelessly at the doors she passed. Internet Safety 101 was apparently taught in Computer Suite 1, as well as various maths and English lessons. Turning her head to the right, she saw the classroom that she guessed Ben must've mentioned to her. She looked at the huge, arching glass doors and the massive blackboard on the small stage at the back of the room. Sunlight bounced off of the large vase of sunflowers sat on the podium, giving the room a very cutesy feel to it.

'Ben!' a girl shouted from the end of the hallway. Her dark brown hair was curled to perfection and neatly pinned on top of her head. She wore a very simple pink sundress with white suede boots and a silver heart necklace.

'Audrey,' Ben acknowledged with a very small (and awkward) smile. 'How are you?'

'Brilliant!' the pink princess gabbled. 'Me and Chad have just been signing up for couples dancing lessons! You and Mal should totally think about joining!'

Mal balked at her frenemy. 'Are you joking?'

'Of course not!' Audrey looked insulted by Mal's question. 'I think it'd be a really cute thing for you to do! You know, seeing as you're a proper couple and everything. You are a proper couple, aren't you?'

Mal didn't miss the slight dig and she bristled slightly. Just because their "relationship" had started due to a love potion didn't mean it wasn't genuine now. After all, Ben had still gone out with Mal even after the potion wore off in the enchanted lake.

'Yes, Audrey, we are,' Ben sighed. 'And I think you know as well as I do that if I did sign us up for those lessons that Mal would turn me into a mouse or something.'

A tall and chiselled boy suddenly appeared at Audrey's side with a cheesy grin. 'Maybe that wouldn't be such a bad thing, bro. Mum's been needing some more mice to help her with her dresses.'

Addie looked at the boy closely. His trim jawline looked nearly unnatural and his eyes were a bright baby-blue. The blonde hair on his head had been jelled to perfection, leaving his fringe as a rock-hard swirl across the right of his forehead. As those sparkling eyes met Addie's own blue ones, something clicked in the back of her head. Panic sunk into the bottom of her stomach and she quickly grabbed Mal's elbow.

'Can you take me to my dorm?'

Mal looked at her in confusion. 'Well we're heading there now. As soon as Ben stops talking to these dorks.'

'No, I mean… now. I-I feel sick. And tired.' She looked pleadingly at Mal. 'I just really need to get out of here.'

Evie nodded solemnly. 'I understand you completely, girl. When we were being shown around the school I felt the same way. All this bright light makes you feel overwhelmed when you first arrive here.' Her hand rubbed Addie's arm in a comforting fashion. 'You'll get used to it.'

'Fairy Godmother said you're rooming with Jane, right?' Mal asked. 'We know where her room is. Evie, you go with Addie and I'll let Ben know; I'll catch up in a minute.'

Ben, who had zoned out of their conversation into his own with Audrey and her companion about the dancing lessons looked down at Mal as she tugged on his sleeve. Evie had already whisked Addie away back the way they'd come. Her motherly instincts kicked in, bustling her friend down the left staircase and up the right one.

'Your dorm room number is 112,' Evie murmured as they drew to a halt in front of a dark wooden door. She knocked twice and the door opened to a very short, plain girl with a dark brown, nearly black, bob and blue dress.

'Jane, this is your new roommate, Adelaide Tremaine! I know you'll take great care of her. Can you get her settled into your room?'

Jane nodded silently.

'Fab! I'll come and gets you both when we go for dinner, okay? Toodles!' Evie turned on her heel and hurried away to find Mal, who never had followed them.

Jane moved aside for Addie to walk in. She looked around at the extraordinarily pink room and glowered at the pink, flower-patterned duvet on her bed.

'H-Hi,' Jane whispered. She squealed slightly as Addie gave her a sharp look. 'I-I'm Jane Godmother. My bed is, uh, the one by the window. But, I mean, if you want to swap..? I really, uhm… I don't mind.'

Adelaide pitied this shy girl and gave her as friendly a smile as she could manage. 'You can keep your bed, I'll have the one by the door. All that sunlight will give me a migraine anyway.'

Jane wheezed a small laugh, grateful that her roommate obviously wasn't a typical nasty villain. 'Yeah, it's a bit of a pain in the summer when the sun rises so early. And these curtains are basically just netting so they don't do much to stop the light getting in.'

Addie dumped her handbag on her bag, setting the few books she'd packed on the bedside table. Jane perched on the edge of her own bed and was about to start asking Addie some basic questions when there was a knock on their door. Mal poked her head through and gave a fleeting smile of greeting.

'Hey, Addie, can I speak to you?'

Addie froze and her fingers lingered on the book she was holding, but one more look at Mal showed that the fairy was adamant she was going to talk to Addie and she wouldn't be leaving until she got answers. Giving up, Addie left her book and walked into the empty hallway.

'So,' Mal began, swinging her arms back and forth, 'why did you rush away so quickly? I know what Evie said about the light but something tells me that's not what it was about.'

Addie cursed in her head and shuffled a foot as she thought of an answer.

'I want the truth, Adelaide. Don't try lying to me.'

With a small huff, Addie looked Mal square in the eyes. 'Who was that blonde guy that was stood next to the girl in loads of pink?'

'The guy with Audrey? That was Chad Charming.'

Addie groaned. 'I thought it was him.'

'Well, what's the problem?'

'Look, Mal, I know we aren't our parents and all that stuff, but something tells me that Chad isn't the same type of person Ben is.'

Thinking back on the disastrous Family Day event, Mal barked out a peal of laughter. 'You aren't wrong there.'

'Exactly! I don't want him to know who I am! He'll hate me for what my mum and grandmother did!'

Sighing deeply, Mal ran a hand through her hair. 'I get your point. I'll talk to Ben about it but there's not going to be much he can do. Word will get around about who you are and who your mother is. There's nothing you can do about that. I can promise you that the people here aren't as snobbish as you'd think they'd be. Well, everyone except Audrey. And Chad.'

Addie groaned at the mere mention of his name. 'I'm sorry, Mal, but I just want to lie down in peace for a bit.'

'Alright, I get the hint,' Mal replied, holding her hands up in surrender. 'I'll see you at dinner, then. And don't worry, I'll make sure we sit away from Chad.'

Smiling slightly, Addie offered Mal a quiet thanks before slipping back into her room. Jane didn't try to talk, she just gave a gentle smile before turning her attention to the homework sprawled out on her bed. Adelaide made a mental note to no longer tell other students her last name. Adelaide didn't sound too similar to Anastasia. With a bit of luck, maybe people wouldn't realise who she was.

Maybe.


End file.
